The Maryland State Board of Education by unanimous vote today adopted the Common Core State Standards in English-language arts and mathematics for grades K-12.

The State Board last month endorsed the draft, but withheld final approval until after the final standards document was released on June 2.

The Common Core Standards is a state-led effort coordinated by the National Governor’s Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers. Maryland became involved in the project last June, when Governor Martin O’Malley and State Superintendent of Schools Nancy S. Grasmick signed on to the initiative along with representatives from 48 other states and two territories.

Maryland will now begin a broad-based year-long process to revise its curriculum to align with the new document. Hundreds of classroom educators, instructional leaders, administrators, and higher education representatives will help State officials review, refine and align the current Maryland State Curriculum with the Common Core.

The new State Curriculum is expected to be ready for State Board adoption in June 2011, an accelerated process made possible by the State’s previous work in this area.

Although the U.S. Department of Education is not directly involved in this initiative, U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan has embraced the Common Core movement, and the Race to the Top program looks favorably on states that have signed on.